How to make smart decisions more easily

Explore the psychology of decision fatigue, what kinds of choices lead us to this state and what we can do to fight it.

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Everything our bodies do— whether physical or mental— uses energy. Studies have found that many individuals seem to have a daily threshold for making decisions, and an extended period of decision-making can lead to cognitive exhaustion. So, what kinds of choices lead us to this state, and what can we do to fight fatigue? Explore the psychology of decision fatigue and ways you can avoid fatigue.

Directed by Jolene Tan.

This video made possible in collaboration with Character Lab

A special thanks to Evan Polman who provided information and insights for the development of this video.

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Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Doreen Reynolds-Consolati, Manognya Chakrapani, Ayala Ron, Eunsun Kim, Phyllis Dubrow, Ophelia Gibson Best, Paul Schneider, Joichiro Yamada, Henrique Cassús, Karthik Cherala, Clarence E. Harper Jr., Vignan Velivela, Ana Maria, Exal Enrique Cisneros Tuch, Tejas Dc, Khalifa Alhulail, Martin Stephen, Jose Henrique Leopoldo e Silva, Mandeep Singh, Abhijit Kiran Valluri, Morgan Williams, Devin Harris, Pavel Zalevskiy, Karen Goepen-Wee, Filip Dabrowski, Barbara Smalley, Megan Douglas, Tim Leistikow, Ka-Hei Law, Hiroshi Uchiyama, Mark Morris, Misaki Sato, EdoKun, SookKwan Loong, Bev Millar, Lex Azevedo, Michael Aquilina, Jason A Saslow, Yansong Li, Cristóbal Moenne, Dawn Jordan, Prasanth Mathialagan, Samuel Doerle, David Rosario, Dominik Kugelmann - they-them, Siamak Hajizadeh, Ryohky Araya, Mayank Kaul, Christophe Dessalles and Heather Slater.

[abhilashakalal]

1) Making fewer daily decisions: Tackling your To-Do list over Multiple days
2) Imagine your decisions as someone else's, before considering how those consequences impact you specifically
3) Remember that not every choice is equally important

[vibinnjoseph]

The decision to watch this video was the smartest decision I've made

[jjzghum]

1.Take important decisions in the morning.
2.Create routines so as to make fewer small decisions daily.
3.Making a todo list and tackle few decisions daily.
4.Imagine taking decisions for others, as we are good at making decisions for others than overselves.
5.Remember not every choice is equally important.

[anni-riin]

"Choosing what to eat in the morning isn't a taxing decision." I got burnt out my first month of living alone because of the sheer magnitude of decision fatigue caused by having to consider what to eat every day.

[Sunflowersarepretty]

This video came in time. Sometimes I'm unable to make any decisions because I get overwhelmed. I had even made wrong decisions too which I regret. Having a routine or pretending you're giving advice to someone else to make that decision is actually good. For me having routines work well. Its a lot easier deciding beforehand what I'll wear, eat and how should I spend the rest of my day.

[nickzardiashvili]

The Paradox of Choice is a good read on the topic. The author repeatedly stresses that not maximizing (trying to get maximal value from your choice) is often the best course of action, at least fro small to medium scale decisions. While maximizing you may increase your chances of ending up with a more optimal option, however you're also increasing your chances of being less happy with it. You'll probably invest a lot of time in making that choice and thus increase your expectation from it, not to mention thinking back about it afterwards, wondering if you've made the correct choice.

[gaberuth]

This makes me curious how decision fatigue varies amongst neurodivergent people. I'm especially interested in the relationship between decision fatigue and perfectionism.

[faribaaskari]

I love the way that the animation scenes beautifully transition according to the text. It was a nice package filled with information, creativity, artistic flair, and insight.

[WagnerPierre-svvd]

This is so true! As a teacher, I know I grade differently (harder or easier) depending on the time of day, so I try to grade all assignments in one seating, in order, to be consistent among all the classes

[blackvelvette]

This video came to me during a week where i have to prepare for exams, a journalism competition, and my birthday all at once. Thank you TED ED.

[alistair]

I works in medical, and financial sector, both of which need fast and correct decision making. Indeed lowering the burdens of daily decision making made easier, and better working conditions.

[shivamsiddharthasinghrajaw]

Discipline in daily tasks save mental energy which can be used for better decision making

[houssamk]

TED-ed never fails to make great animation!

[AychNoir]

4:29 This right here is my savior because emotional pressure is significantly lowered by thinking of the issue at hand to be someone else's instead of mine.

[theWZZA]

"You need to make better decisions" is a phrase often heard. I think "know the consequences of your decisions" is better advice.

[siddhidhuri]

Amount of value in a ted ed video is more than hours of motivational videos

[ShaharHarshuv]

Funny, I'm watching YouTube now because I'm tired of doing anything productive

[crispin]

Well before mentioning the medical field, I immediately thought to myself that decision fatigue is very common within the emergency side of medicine. As a paramedic myself who regularly works 48 hour shifts and previously at a high volume service, I think I’m very fortunate to have Not made any grave errors. Unfortunately, I cannot say the same for past and present coworkers. You would be surprised how many studies exist regarding the correlations between sleep, diet, and mental health within the world of first responders.

[Showmetheevidence-]

As a business owner, decision fatigue is real - especially on those really busy, hectic days where there are a ton of NB meetings etc.
So I do my best to make the most NB ones in the mornings…

[SlimatronMC]

This was beautifully made, thank you to the creators and TED ED for posting this